Subnautica 2 vehicles currently come down to one submersible, the Tadpole, plus the parts you attach to it. You unlock it by scanning three Tadpole fragments, then fabricate it at a Vehicle Fabricator placed on the edge of a Moonpool in your seabase. Two dockable chassis (the fast Scout Ray and the four-player Haul) and five craftable upgrade modules change how it works, and the Tadpole Depth Module Mk. 1 raises its crush depth from 250 m to 450 m.
This guide reflects the official Subnautica 2 wiki and Unknown Worlds patch notes up to Buddy System Hotfix 2 (October 6, 2026). Subnautica 2 is in Early Access, so recipes, data card spots and balance numbers can change in later updates. All coordinates below are the ones listed on the official wiki.
01
Which vehicles are in Subnautica 2 right now
The Tadpole is the only entry on the official wiki's vehicle list, and Unknown Worlds introduced it before launch as the game's new submersible in its "Crafting the Tadpole" dev vlog. The Tadpole Subnautica 2 gives you is a one-pilot pod with a large canopy, a rear propeller and thrusters for moving in any direction, a top speed of 8 m/s and 100 health.
You cannot drive a Seamoth. The only one in the game is a decorative Seamoth Model, a Twitch drop from the May 9, 2026 pre-launch showcase that is currently unobtainable. Instead of separate vehicles, the Tadpole acts as a core module that docks into interchangeable chassis, which you can swap out in the field.
02
How to unlock and build the Tadpole
Fragment scans unlock the chain in order: the first Tadpole fragment gives you the Power Cell, the second the Moonpool (whose Recipe Data Cards also sit in the Tailings Village, the Tadpole Pens and the Canteen wreck), and the third the Tadpole, the Vehicle Fabricator and the Tadpole Dock.
- Build a Room and add a Moonpool to its floor with the Habitat Builder.
- Place the Vehicle Fabricator on the Moonpool's edge.
- Craft a Power Cell at a Fabricator, then fabricate the Tadpole at the Vehicle Fabricator.
- Add a Tadpole Dock on the Moonpool's edge so the Tadpole recharges while parked.
The Subnautica 2 Vehicle Fabricator builds only the Tadpole and its two chassis, needs free floor space behind the Moonpool and draws 5 energy per second. A default 3x3 Moonpool fits a bare Tadpole, while the wiki's dock page says the Scout Ray needs 3x4 and the Haul 5x6. Since the Adaptive Measures update (July 8, 2026), the game tells you when the Moonpool has to be enlarged for fabrication or docking.
| Build | Made at | Recipe |
|---|---|---|
| Moonpool | Habitat Builder | 4 Titanium |
| Vehicle Fabricator | Habitat Builder | 2 Titanium Ingot, 1 Copper Ingot, 2 Glass |
| Tadpole Dock | Habitat Builder | 2 Titanium Ingot, 1 Silver Ingot, 2 Copper Wire |
| Power Cell | Fabricator | 2 Basic Battery, 1 Strong Acid, 1 Salt |
| Tadpole | Vehicle Fabricator | 2 Titanium Ingot, 1 Glass, 1 System Chip, 1 Power Cell |
Ingredient sources are covered in the crafting materials guide.
Subnautica 2 Tadpole fragment locations
The Tadpole Pens hold several fragments, but the wiki says you need the Heat Tolerance adaptation to approach that base, so the shallow Plateaus and Lander Garage spots are easier early targets.
| Coordinates and depth | Where |
|---|---|
| -322745, 389389 @ 35m | In the Plateaus, NE of the Old Habitat |
| -313037, 401444 @ 45m | North of the Lander Garage wreck |
| -339070, 391576 @ 60m | Near the Old Habitat |
| -308947, 408013 @ 65m | In the Lander Garage wreck |
| -352967, 450530 @ 88m | In a Colonist Bunker west of the big hole |
| -338250, 444410 @ 90m | Partway down the trench just SW of the Welcome Center |
| -306829, 465456 @ 90m | South of the Hot Cave Basecamp |
| -347630, 465928 @ 125m | Beneath the Great Jaw |
| -289066, 446929 @ 125m | North side of the Tailings Village |
| -276853, 440938 @ 145m | SW of the Tadpole Pens |
| -271190, 434613 @ 150m | Outside the front hatch of the Tadpole Pens |
| -268969, 435418 @ 150m | Docked in the Tadpole Pens |
03
Power, oxygen and repairs
A Power Cell holds 200 energy and the upgraded Entangled Power Cell holds 400; its blueprint is scanned just northeast of the Karakorum Power Plant. To recharge, move the cell from the socket on top of the Tadpole to a Power Cell Terminal, park at a powered Tadpole Dock, or fit the Photovoltaic Charger.
While powered, the Tadpole is also an air supply. Its databank promises unlimited oxygen as long as it has power, and ports under the side handlebars let passengers refill without climbing in. A Buddy System fix made air drain for anyone holding on to or riding the Haul of an unpowered Tadpole, and Hotfix 1 made refills reliable for players attached to a Tadpole or Haul. The oxygen guide covers every other air source.
Collisions and creature attacks damage the hull. Repair it with the Repair Tool (1 Titanium Ingot, 1 Wiring Kit, 1 Basic Battery and 1 Sulfur at the Fabricator), which unlocks after two fragment scans since the Buddy System update. At zero health the Tadpole explodes, hurting anyone nearby, and it must be repaired back to the full 100 before it works again. Tadpoles destroyed outside the Early Access boundary are moved back inside it so you can recover them, and Hotfix 2 fixed cases where that teleport went wrong.
04
Subnautica 2 Tadpole upgrades and data card locations
The Tadpole has four upgrade slots behind its power cell socket. Every module is crafted at the Modification Station (2 Titanium, 2 Celestine and 2 Copper with the Habitat Builder), which one scan unlocks, for example at the Research Outpost (-208879, 425138 @ 140m). Each module's blueprint then comes from a Recipe Data Card, and you will want Celestine for both the station and the first depth module.
| Module | Effect | Recipe (Modification Station) | Data card (official wiki) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tadpole Depth Module Mk. 1 | Crush depth 450 m, does not stack | 3 Celestine, 2 Enameled Glass, 1 System Chip | Needler Nest, beside a crashed Tadpole: -200191, 450554 @ 295m |
| Tadpole Depth Module Mk. 2 | Crush depth 800 m (game files) | 1 Depth Module Mk. 1, 2 Troilite, 2 Tar Graphene | None known, not obtainable yet |
| Engine Efficiency | 20% less power use per module, up to 80% | 2 Titanium Ingot, 2 Glass, 1 System Chip | Inside the Research Outpost: -206756, 425653 @ 140m |
| Strike Armor | 50% less incoming damage, one per Tadpole | 2 Enameled Glass, 2 Strontium | Worksite near the Research Outpost: -214611, 443963 @ 195m |
| Cavitation Muffler | Quieter, so hostile creatures notice you less | 3 Titanium, 2 Strontium | Worksite near the Karakorum Metal Farms: -145201, 402123 @ 375m |
| Photovoltaic Charger | Recharges in daylight above 40 m | 1 Copper Ingot, 1 Strong Acid, 1 Troilite | Side room in the EVA Prep wreck: -162471, 457792 @ 110m |
Only Engine Efficiency stacks, and a Buddy System fix stopped the other Subnautica 2 Tadpole upgrades from being installed twice. The wiki's Tadpole page rates the Photovoltaic Charger at 15 to 30% charge per hour. One Research Outpost trip covers the Modification Station scan, the Engine Efficiency card and the nearby Strike Armor worksite, while the EVA Prep wreck needs a Repair Tool to open its doors.
05
Subnautica 2 depth module and crush depth
A bare Tadpole is safe to 250 m, and Mk. 1 is the only depth module Subnautica 2 lets you craft in Survival right now. Past the limit the Tadpole warns you, allows a few seconds to turn back, then takes damage continuously until you climb or it breaks; the wiki says a Repair Tool only buys time. A Tadpole docked in a Moonpool takes no depth damage, however deep the base is.
The Mk. 1 card sits at 295 m on the lower level of the Needler Nest, a mesa in the Overgrown Ruins, so it is below the bare Tadpole's limit. The wiki's Depth page says divers take no damage from depth itself, only faster oxygen loss, so park above 250 m and swim down. Watch for Needler Mangos, including an oversized one the wiki says patrols above the nest.
Mk. 2's 800 m rating comes from the game files. The wiki marks it as datamined, lists its Tar Graphene ingredient as unimplemented and calls it unavailable in Survival. With the wiki's biome table running Root Canyon down to 750 m and the Overgrown Ruins to 600 m, the deepest areas stay beyond any Tadpole for now. For the biomes themselves, see the map and biomes guide.
06
Scout Ray and Haul chassis
Chassis are crafted at the Vehicle Fabricator and attach automatically when you drive the Tadpole up to them. Only one fits at a time, and you can eject it whenever you like, for example to take the slimmer bare Tadpole into a tight cave.
| Chassis | Speed | What it adds | Recipe (Vehicle Fabricator) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scout Ray | 10 m/s | Better acceleration and turning, folding wings, keeps one hardpoint | 2 Plasteel Ingot, 1 Advanced Wiring Kit, 1 Dedicated Core, 1 Strong Acid |
| Haul | 8 m/s, slow acceleration | Two seats and a handlebar for four players, 30-slot storage, two hardpoints, underside camera, an oxygen port at every spot | 4 Titanium Ingot, 3 Strontium, 3 Enameled Glass, 1 Dedicated Core |
The Scout Ray blueprint comes from one scan of the chassis fitted to the unusable Tadpole docked in the Tadpole Pens. It mounts on the rear hardpoint, so clear that hardpoint before docking; the chassis has a hardpoint of its own. The Haul needs three fragment scans from the five spots below. Two of them sit deeper than even the Mk. 1 rating, so the 205 m, 220 m and 290 m spots are the easier three.
| Haul fragment | Where |
|---|---|
| -125170, 436613 @ 205m | Just south of the Stairway to Heaven |
| -137031, 448513 @ 220m | Just outside the Therapy Room wreck |
| -200430, 450385 @ 290m | Within the Needler Nest |
| -164284, 429689 @ 455m | Very close to the Axum Vision Angel Comb |
| -141277, 401173 @ 465m | On the SW side of the Karakorum Metal Farms |
07
Hardpoints, storage and deconstruction
The rear hardpoint takes anything you can carry, such as a Portable Locker, a Portable Oxygen Generator, a Work Light, a Beacon or a tool. Without a chassis, a 15-slot Portable Locker is the Tadpole's only storage, while a detached Haul still works as a storage pod.
To recycle a Tadpole with the Habitat Builder, undock it and empty its power cell socket and upgrade panel, with no chassis attached. A chassis can be deconstructed once it is detached and its hardpoints are clear.
08
Vehicles planned for later
Unknown Worlds' Early Access roadmap says the next big content drop will expand vehicles along with biomes, creatures, resources, tools and the story, but gives no date. In the October 15, 2026 dev vlog, Creative Director Anthony Gallegos named the Frog Chassis, a buildable Tadpole chassis with arms and legs, as an Early Access 2 highlight, again without a date. Scanning a Tadpole fragment already makes the PDA mention hulls "from the Scout Ray seafoil to the Bullfrog workmech", and the wiki lists the walking chassis under that name (which it marks as not canonical) as future content with no obtainable blueprint. Its Hydraulic Bulb ingredient is unimplemented, so treat any recipe or stats from the game files as unconfirmed.
The Collector Leviathan can grab and throw a Tadpole for light damage or swipe it for much more. The wiki suggests surfacing and the Cavitation Muffler help when crossing the Intermediary Basin, and says the Collector above the Karakorum Metal Farms ignores you while you stay deeper than 350 m. Hotfix 2 adjusted leviathan grabs on the Tadpole and stopped the Shiver Leviathan from interacting with unpiloted vehicles. See the leviathans guide, and the walkthrough for where the Tadpole fits into the story.